A/N: This is my first Max story, so please bear with me. I wrote this a few hours after finishing FANG. I couldn't sleep. I was overwhelmed with grief. Whoa. That sounded really emo. Sorry for that. Anyway, enjoy.

I picked up the CD, staring at the cover. Like most of the other CDs on display in this section, it showed a group of boys, with long, dark hair covering their guy-liner embellished eyes. I put it down, sighing. I checked my watch for the umpteenth time in the past hour. Where were Iggy and the rest of the flock? I had told them three o'clock. Sharp. Ugh. That's what I get for leaving my family with a blind kid in charge.

I walked around the music store again. I decided to head over to the free music samples. Nothing like oldies music to get your mind off your misery. Walking past the store window, I snuck a glance at my reflection. I looked...different. Clean, yeah. I'll admit that was new. But, it wasn't just the dirt- and blood-free clothes. It was...my face. My eyes. They looked...dead. Lifeless. I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. I could feel my eyes moisten with tears. This was the main reason I hated to wait; to be left alone. Because leaving without company, leaving me alone, meant leaving me at the mercy of my thoughts.

I forced my eyes open, scanning my reflection again. Something at the corner of the store caught my eye. Someone, a dark figure, moved through the shelves of music. He seemed to be in a hurry. Again, a flash of dark hair got my attention. My breath hitched in my throat. Could it be? Was it possible that...?

I blinked rapidly. Acting on impulse, I followed the quick-moving figure, weaving in and out of the crowd. My heart pounding in my throat, I saw my target, only a few feet away from me. He looked so painfully familiar, I felt my throat tighten. Just as he turned a corner, I bumped into something - someone. Startled, I jumped back slightly before regaining my composure and resuming my...was stalking the right term? Whatever. I was following him. Following my heart. (And we all know what great consequences came out of that.)

I scanned the perimeter, looking for the boy. Drat! I lost him. Stupid man; bumping into me. Well, technically, I bumped into him; but if I say it was his fault, it was his fault. I raced out of the CD shop, blood roaring in my ears. My mind reeling with ideas, freakishly familiar scenarios.

Then, lo and behold, I spotted his figure again! There he was; walking towards the exit of the mall. No, wait! I had to get to him. I had to pull him back. Beg him to return. Kidnap him, if it came to that! Whatever it took. I had to get him back. Just as I began to walk determinedly towards him, a voice called out to me.

"Max!" I swiveled around to find my entire flock waiting for me. It was a dream come true. We were all in the same place at the same time. It was just a matter of actually being together - a minor setback. But when I turned around once more, to look for the dark, looming figure of the boy who held my heart; he was gone.

"Max!" Someone from my flock yelled again. I ignored them. Was it Nudge or Iggy? I couldn't tell. I didn't care. All I cared about was the boy I loved. The boy I lost.

"Max! MAX!"

I woke up; my forehead was covered in sweat. Nudge was bent over me, sitting on the side of my bed. "Are you okay?"

I forced myself to nod, although it made my head hurt. "Yeah," I managed to murmur.

"Breakfast in ten," she said. "Iggy's making waffles." I stared at the wall blankly. "Yeah, yeah. Sure, sure." Nudge looked at me skeptically before walking out of my room.

I got out of bed and peered into the hall. Walking over to the bathroom, I swore under my breath. I'd had that dream again. Every time it was a little different. The setting would change; my clothes would change. The only things that wouldn't change were the dead, resigned look in my eyes; the pounding of my heart; and the fact that, in the end, I never reached him.

Fang.

I turned on the shower and held out my hands as I waited for the water to become hot. Fang. I still remembered him perfectly. I remembered the last day I'd seen him; all dressed up and as handsome as ever. How could I forget? It felt like just yesterday when I'd read the note he left, my hands shaking. Just yesterday. When I'd felt my heart shatter into a million tiny pieces.

But in truth, it hadn't been just yesterday. It had been exactly two months, twenty-nine days, nineteen hours, and six minutes ago. Seconds? I didn't know. I didn't count seconds. Not that I'd been counting at all. I mean, come on, right? I wasn't the type to count and wait.

Except that's exactly what I did. Count. Wait. Live, barely. Inside I was dying. Life was nothing without Fang.